Textile product and method of making the same



Mardi 9, 1943' c. s. FRANCIS, JR 2,313,058

TEXTILE PRODUCT AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME Filed July 1'7',` 1941 Ziyi Patented Mar. 9, 1943 TEXTILE PRODUCT AND METHOD F MAKING THE SAME Carleton S. Francis, Jr., Chestnut Hill, Pa., as-

signor to Sylvania Industrial Corporation, Fredericksburg, Va., a corporation of Virginia Application July 1'1,` 1941, Serial No. 402,812

(cl. 5714o) 23 claims.

This invention relates in general to textiles and in particular to a yarn and to a process forits production, and to correlated improvements decharacteristics, and adapt the textile to other uses. Heretofore attempts to modify flexibility, permeability, resistance to abrasion and laundering, shrinkage, stretching, untwisting, unravelling and the likehave consisted inapplying an external coat to the yarn or thread. While this has attained some of the objects, nevertheless such compositions havejadversely affected or destroyed desired features as appearance, texture, surface absorptivity and handle. Further, the textile no longer appeared to be the same material, and it was diicult, at times even impracticable, to dye, print, and carry out other finishing operations. These methods are all surface altering processes.

In my parent U. S. Patent No. 2,253,000 I have disclosed and claimed one method of solving this problem by mixing together, prior to the completion of spinning, at least two types of bres, one of which is a synthetic resin fibre having an inherent tackiness upon heating, spinning said mixture of fibres into yarn, subsequently rendering such resin fibres tacky by heat to effect a strong and substantially permanent adhesion between the fibres. The present invention relates to the same process as said Patent No. 2,253,000,

to untwist; to prevent distortion of fabrics as by laddering and running of the yarns; to utilize in the fabrication of yarns shorter bres than those heretofore employed, while maintaining or increasing the strength; and to provide fabric characterized by an increased stiffness and im proved resistance to wear, abrasion and laundering.

Other objects will in part be obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.

According to the present invention, multi-ply yarns adapted for use in making stabilized textiles are produced by twisting together a strand of textile fibres with a strand of thermoplastic fibres and heating said thermoplastic fibres to render them tacky and bind the fibresin the yarn.

In the specification and claims the term strand is used in a generic sense and includes one or a plurality of continuous filaments, a sliver `or roving of staple fibres, and a preformed singles yarn. While these specic terms have their usual meaning in the art, the expression composite multi-ply yarn designates a yarn comprising two or more strands which tend to maintain separate identities in the article before activation. The composite yarn of the present invention is not to be confused with the singles yarns of mixed fibres produced by commingling at least two types of fibres as in my parent Patent No. 2,253,000. l

For a more complete understanding of the nature and objects of the invention, reference'should be had to the accompanying drawing in which:

but in the present invention the association of the fibres is accomplished by means other than by mixing the fibres together prior to the completionr nently increase the tensile strength and resistance to untwisting of yarns, threads and cords of all kinds. l. p Y

The specific objects of the invention are, inter alia, to provide a cord characterized by a superior strength, a lower stretch and shrinkage, to provide a thread having permanently increased strength, less shrinkage and decreased tendency Fig. 1 is a side elevation of suitable means for carrying out one embodiment of the process of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a representation of a yam by. use of the means illustrated in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of suitable means for carrying out a second embodiment of the process; Fig. 4 is a side elevation of other means for carryingout another embodiment of the process; Figs. 5 and 6 are perspective views of products l capable of being produced by either of the means mineral wool; also artificial fibres or filaments formed of cellulose compounds, such as regenerated cellulose or cellulose hydrate of all kinds, cellulose derivatives, such as the esters, the ethers, whether soluble in water, alkali or organic solvents, mixed cellulose ethers, mixed cellulose ester-ethers, hydroxy-alkyl and carboxy-alkyl ethers of cellulose and xanthates of the cellulose ethers, cellulose thiourethanes, cellulose xantho-fatty acids, and fibres formed from natural orsynthetic resins of all kinds, which resinous fibres should be of the type that will not be rendered tacky at the temperature employed to render the thermoplastic bres tacky.

The potentially adhesive fibre may comprise any thermoplastic synthetic resinous material or thermoplastic non-fibrous cellulosic material capable of being formed Into fibres which have an inherent tackiness upon heating to a temperature below that at which the textile fibres are dam-A aged or rendered tacky and which are non-tacky at room temperature, such, for example, as the resins formed by the polymerization of various organic compounds such as cumarone, indene hydrocarbons, vinyl, styrene, sterol, aldehyde, furfural, ketones, urea, thiourea, phenol-aldehyde resins, either alone or modified with oils, urea-aldehyde,` resins, amine-aldehyde lresins, sulfonamide-aldehyde resins,` polyhydric alcoholpolybasic acid resins, drying oil-modified alkyd resins, resins formed from acrylic acid, its homologues and their derivatives, sulfur-olefine resins, resins formed from dicarboxylic acids and diamines (nylon type); fibres formed from synthetic or artificial rubber such for example as polymerized butadiene, olene-polysuliides, e. g. Thiokol, isobutylene polymers, chloroprene polymers and polyvinyl-halides, e. g. Koroseal," bres formed from a resin comprising the product of co-polymerizing two or more resins, such, for example, as co-polymers of vinyl halide and vinyl acetate, co-polymers of vinyl compound and styrol compound; and also bres formed from a mixture of resins, such for example as a mixture of vinyl resins and acrylic acid resins or methacrylic resins, a mixture of polyoleflne resins and phenol-aldehyde resins, or a mixture of two or more resins from the different classes Y just named.

(a) Heat-non-convertible resins such for exA ample as glycol polybasic acid resins, vinyl resins and the acid type phenol-aldehyde resins, and the like. I

(b) Heat-convertible resins such for example as a. glycerol-polybasic acid resin, polyolefine resins, phenol-aldehyde resins and the like.

(c) An element-convertible resin (which becomes infusible through the action of `certain elements, such as oxygen and sulphur), such for example as glycerol-polybasic acid-drying oil resins and oleiine sulphur resins.

' In addition to the synthetic resins, there may be employed for the potentially adhesive bre, a fibre formed from a thermoplastic cellulose derivative such, for example, as a cellulose ester, a cellulose ether, a mixed cellulose ester-ether, or a mixed cellulose ether.` In particular, the thermoplastic cellulose derivative fibre may be a fibre of cellulose acetate, cellulose nitrate or an organic soluble cellulose ethyl ether, and the like; also fibres formed from amixture of cellulose derivatives and resins, such for example as a. fibre formed by extruding a mixture of cellulose ',peratures and cool to form tough or pliable products. Moreover, the'resin bres are inert to acids, alkalies and dry cleaning fluids, and are not water-swelling. This latter property prevents distortion of the adhesive bond, tends to stabilize the twist and shrinkage of the fabric, and the adhesive is more permanent so that the wet and dry tensile strength of the adhesive bond will be substantially the same'. Finally, the resin fibres exhibit, particularly when plasticized, a high tensile strength and a true elasticity, practically as greatv as that of natural silk.

The nonadhesive textile fibres and/ or the potentially adhesive fibres may be prestretched fibres or filaments.

In such cases the shrinking treatment advantageously includes treatment with a suitable chemical reagent or heat to effect a shrinkage of the prestretched fibre. The resulting fibre-shortening will produce yarn shrinkage and augment the decrease in fabric dimension.

The articles of the invention are .fabricated from the composite yarns comprising at least two dissimilar types of strands at least one of which type is thermoplastic. The term potentially thermoplastic strand as used herein and in the claims designates that strand which is rendered adhesive under the conditions of heat treatment, as distinguished from the strand which under the same conditions is not rendered adhesive; that is, the invention contemplates that both the strands may actually be thermoplastic but that only one of them is rendered adhesive under the particular conditions of heating.

The thermoplastic fibres are rendered tacky by use of hot air, hot water or by contact with hot surfaces, with or without the addition of a solvent or plasticizer, and with or without the use of pressure, and such treatments may be carried out on the yarn or fabrics made therefrom, and the expression treating the potentially thermoplastic strand to render said strand adhesive as used in the claims includes treating the yarn before, during, or after fabrication into a fabric.

While the fibres are in an adhesive condition, the yarn or fabric preferably is subjected to a squeezing or compacting treatment to promote adhesion of the associated fibres ,at their points of contact as by passing the fabric between pressure rollers. The squeezing may be effected by the means employed for mechanically shrinking fabrics as described hereinafter.

Deactivtion may be accomplished by heating to a higher temperature, as in the case of a heatconvertible resin nbre, or by cooling, as in the case onfb a thermoplastic resin or Acellulose derivative A plasticizer advantageously may be applied to the thermoplastic fibres and/or to the fabric before the activation of the bres. The"plasticizer may function to increase the exibility of the libres and, when employed with thermoplastic fibres, the plasticizer may serve, in addition to modify the thermal softening point. The plasticized thermoplastic fibres can berendered cementitious by heating to a temperature below that at which the non-thermoplastic textile fibres in the textile would be detrimentally affected by such heating. The plasticizer may .be allowed to remain in the textile yor it maybe removed by' suitable means such as washing and extraction. The removal of the plasticizer Will raise the temperature at which thermoplastic material in the textile will again be rendered soft and cementitious, thus adapting the textile for use at more elevated temperatures than would be the case if the plasticizer were present. The plasticizer may serve also as a shrinking agent orv as a latent activating agent for the thermoplastic bres.

In carrying out the process of the invention with the apparatus shown in Fig. 1, a strand I consisting of thermoplastic fibres is withdrawn from a spool 2 and passed through a pair of pressure rollers 3 and thereafter through the center of a rotatable yarn spool 4 which carries thereon a supply of a strand 5 of textile lbres, the spool 4 being rotated by means of the belt 6 which drives the roll 'I. As the strand I passes upward through the yarn spool 4, the strand 5 is spirally wound around the strand I to produce the composite yarn 8 which then passes through the pressure rolls 9 from which the composite yarn may be reeled up. The composite yarn 8 is shown in an enlarged View in Fig. 2`from which it is noted that the strand I in this embodiment lies in a substantially straight condition, whereas the strand 5 is spirally wound around the strand I. When the composit yarn is heated sufficiently to render the fibres of the strand I tacky,`but insuiiiciently to destroy the iilamentary form of the strand I, the spiral wrappings of the strand 5 will be bound together and prevented from untwisting or separating or from becoming displaced with respect to the strand I. It is to be understood that, if desired, the strand 5 may consist of thermoplastic bres, in which case the strand I consists of the non-thermoplastic textile fibres. The twisting of the strand 5 about the strand I in the apparatus of Fig. 1 will normally cause a certain amount of twist to be imparted to the strand I and this will normally result in the production of an unbalanced composite yarn which will tend to kink. This result may be avoided if desired' by pre-twisting the yarn I or by imparting twist to the strand I before it passes through the pressure rollers 3. The twist put into the stra-nd I should Athe strand 5 by the use of a second spool positioned above the rollers 9.

,"Ih'e process of the invention may also be carried out by employing the rolls of a drafting frame as illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4. In that embodiment shown in Fig. 3 one of the strands comprises a roving I0 which is drawn through the drafting rolls I I, I2 and I3 in conventional manner. There is also passed through the nip of the last pair of rolls I3 a second strand which, for example, is shown as a lament I4 in Fig. 3. By maintaining the filament I4 under suitable tension, the roving may be caused to become twisted aboutthe filament I4 as the composite yarn is spun between the nip of the rolls I3 and the bobbin I5, the composite yarn 8' passing through a pig-tail I6 through the ring traveler I1 on to the spool I5 which is rotated by means of the belt 6 which drives the roll 1'. In this embodiment either the roving III or the filament I4 may be thermoplastic and it is to be understood that while only a single roving is illustrated, a plurality of rovings may be fed through the drafting rolls and twisted simultaneously about a single core strand I4. By varying the relative tension on the rovings II) and the strand I4, it is possible to cause the strand I4 to become twisted about the rovings.

In that embodiment shown in Fig. 4, the strand I4 is not passed through the nip of the draftings rolls I3, but is first passed between a pair of pressure rolls I8 which are positioned above the rolls I3 so that the strand I 4 passes tangentially to the rolls I3 in a downward direction and contacts the roving adjacent. the surface of the lower roll I3.

The roving I0 is caused to be twisted about the strand I4 by the use of suitable means as shown in Fig. 3. As in the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 3, the rovings i6) or the strand I4 shown in Fig. 4 may consist of thermoplastic fibres and two o r more rovings may be employed.

When a roving Il) is twisted about a lcontinuous filament I4, there may be produced by the apparatus shown in Figs. 3 and 4 composite yarn of fibres about which is twisted a covering strand I0 also comprising a multiplicityof fibres. In the embodiment shown in Fig. 6 either the core I4 or the covering strand I0 may consist of thermoplastic fibres. o

The composite yarn of the present invention may comprise a plied yarn which can be produced, for example, by the use cfa the apparatus shown in Fig. 7 in which a plurality of strands 2l carried on the several spools I9 are passed through a common pig-tail I6 and then through a flier I 'I' and Wound up on the spool I5 which is driven by means of the belt 6 and the driven roll l. The several strands 2I are doubled i'n passing from the pig-tail I6' to the spool I5'. The composite yarn 20 produced with the apparatus illustrated in Fig. 7 is shown in Fig. 8. this product differing from the composite yarn shown in Fig, 2 in that in the article shown in Fig. 8 all of the strands are twisted about each other as in` a conventional plied thread or cord. It is to be understood that one or more of thestrands 2| in the composite cord 20 illustrated in Fig. 8 may be formed of continuous filaments, or in kwhole or in part of thermoplastic fibres, the heating of which will bind the libres in the product, stabilize the yarn twist and the relation of the yarns to each other in the cord. The binding of the vlibres and the strands to each other will also prevent separation and blooming of the plies in the cord which is prevalent in cords formed of smooth surfaced bres or from continuous filament yarns and in particular from yarns composed of siliceous bres, such as glass fibres, asbestos fibres, rock wool, and slag fibres. By causing the potentially thermoplastic strands to be substantially on the`surface of the composite yarns, the activation may be such as to provide the composite yarn with a substantially continuous coating of the material resulting from the activation of the thermoplastic material. -This will be advantageous in the manufacture of plied yarns where adhesion between the plies is desirable in preventing yarn/slippage in fabrics, and also beneficial when it is desired to impart a uniform color l to the yarns, in which case the color is carried kinds which may be used as warp or as iiller` (weft) in making fabrics, or in association with other yarns of like or unlike character, in Weavf ing, knitting, netting, lacing, and other textile constructions, for the preparation of threads and cords of all kinds. Also fabrics may be made from the multi-ply yarns by suitable processes, for example, weaving, knitting, netting, lacing, braiding, crocheting, and thelike, such fabrics being adapted for various uses 4such as collar cloth, shirting, garments, garmentl liners, bedding, table covers, book cloths, artificial leather, balloon and airplane fabrics, and many other uses. There may be produced also sewing threads, fishing cords, tying cords, and, in particular, cords for purposes requiring high abrasion resistance.

I claim:

1. In a process of making a composite multiply yarn, the steps comprising associating a potentially thermoplastic strand with a nonthermoplastic strand yby twisting one of said strands about the other, and treating said potentially thermoplastic strand to render said strand adhesive and bond said strands together.

2. In a process of making a composite multiply yarn, the steps comprising associating a potentially thermoplastic strand with a non-adhesive strand by wrapping one of said strands about the other, and treating said potentially thermoplastic strand to render` said ,strand adhesive and bond said strands together.

3. In a process of making a composite multiply yarn, the steps comprising drafting a strand of fibres to form a roving, associating said drafted strand with another strand by twisting one of said strands about the other, one of said strands being potentially thermoplastic and one of said strands being non-thermoplastic, and treating said potentially thermoplastic strand strand consisting of a multiplicity of potentially thermoplastic' fibres with a strand comprising a multiplicity of non-thermoplastic fibres by twisting one of said strands about the other, and treating said potentially thermoplastic fibres to render said fibres adhesive and bond said strands together.

'1. In a process of making a composite multiply yarn, the steps comprising associating a yarn consisting of a potentially thermoplastic material with a yarn comprising a non-thermoplastic material by twisting'one of said yarns about the other, and treating said potentially thermoplastic material to render it adhesive and bond said yarns together.

8. In a process of making a textile comprising composite multi-ply yarns, the steps comprising associating a potentially thermoplastic strand with a non-thermoplastic strand by twisting one of said strands about the other to form a composite yarn, forming said yarn into a fabric, and

heating said fabric `to render said potentially to render the same adhesive and bond saidA gether.

6. In a process of making a composite multiply yarn, the steps comprising associating a thermoplastic strand adhesive to bond said potentially thermoplastic strand to said non-thermoplastic strand and said yarn to a contiguous yarn in said fabric.

9. As an article of manufacture. a composite multi-ply yarn comprising at least one potentially thermoplastic strand twisted with at least one non-thermoplastic strand, the thermoplastic strand in said yarn exhibiting a strong and substantially permanent adhesion to the non-thermoplasticstrand due to the thermal tackiness after heating of said thermoplastic strand, whereby said composite yarn structure is stabilized.

- 10. As an article of manufacture, a composite multi-ply yarn comprising a potentially thermoplastic lament and a non-thermoplastic filament twisted together, said first filament exhibiting a strong and substantially permanent adhesion to said second filament due to the thermal tackiness after heating of said thermoplastic filament, whereby said composite yarn structure is stabilized.

11. As an article of manufacture, a composite multi-ply yarn comprisinga strand formed of a multiplicity of potentially thermoplastic fibres twisted with a strand comprising a multiplicity of non-thermoplastic fibres, the fibres in said first strand exhibiting a strong and substantially permanent adhesion to the fibres in saidsecond strand due to the thermal tackiness after heating of said rst strand, whereby said composite yarn structure is stabilized.

12. As an article of manufacture, a textile fabric comprising a compositemulti-ply yarn comprising a yarn formed of a potentially thermoplastic material doubled with a yarn formed of a non-thermoplastic material, the yarn of thermoplastic material exhibitingy a -strong and substantially permanent adhesion to the yarn of non-thermoplastic material due to the thermal tackiness after heating of said fabric, composite yarn and fabric, whereby the yarns of said composite yarn are bonded to each other and said composite yarn is bonded to a contiguous yarn in said fabric.

13. As an article of manufacture, a textile fabric comprising a composite multi-ply yarn comprising a strand formed of a potentially thermoplastic resin twisted with a non-thermoplastic strand, therst strand exhibiting a strong and substantially permanent adhesion to the second strand due to the A.thermal tackiness after heating of said composite yarn and fabric, whereby the strands of said composite yarn are bonded to each other and said composite yarn is bonded to a contiguous yarn in said fabric, whereby said composite yarn structure is stabilized.

14. As an article of manufacture, a textile fabric comprising a composite multi-ply yarn comprising a. strand formed of a potentially thermoplastic cellulose derivative twisted with a nonthermoplastic strand, the first strand exhibiting a strong and substantially permanent adhesion to the second strand due to the thermal tackiness after heating` of said composite yarn and fabric, whereby the strands of said composite yarn are bonded to each other and said composite yarn is bonded to a contiguous yarn in said fabric.

15. As an article of manufacture, a textile .fabric comprising composite multi-ply yarns having at least one potentially thermoplastic strand twisted with at least one non-thermoplastic strand, the thermoplastic strand in said yarns exhibiting a strong and substantially permanent adhesion to the non-thermoplastic strand due to the thermal tackiness after heating of said composite yarn and fabric, whereby the strands of said composite yarn are bonded to each other and said composite yarn is bonded to a contiguous yarn in said fabric.

16. A process of making a textile fabric comprising composite multi-ply yarns, the steps comprising associating a potentially thermoplastic strand with a non-thermoplastic strand by wrapping one of said strands about the other to form a composite yarn, forming said yarn into a fabric,

and heating saidfabric to render said potentially thermoplastic strand adhesive to bond said strands to each other in the yarns and to bond said yarns to contiguous yarns in the fabric.

17. A'process of making a textile fabric comprising composite multi-ply yarns, the steps comprising drafting a strand of fibres to form a roving, associating said roving strand with another strand by twisting one of said strands about the other to form a composite yarn, one of said strands being potentially thermoplastic and one of said strands being non-thermoplastic, forming said composite yarn into a fabric and heating said fabric to render said thermoplastic strand adhesive to bond said strands to each other in the yarns and to hond said yarns to contiguous yarns in the fabric.

18. A process of making a textile fabric comprising composite multi-ply yarns, the steps comprising wrapping a potentially thermoplastic strand about a non-thermoplastic strand to form a composite yarn in which the thermoplastic strand forms the external surface thereof, forming said composite yarn into a fabric, and treating said fabric with heat and pressure to render said potentially thermoplastic strand adhesive to bond said strands to each other in the yarns and to bond said yarns to contiguous yarns in the fabric. y

19. A process of making a composite multi-ply yarn, the steps comprising drafting a strand of potentially thermoplastic fibres to form a roving, twisting said roving strand about a non-thermoplastic strand to form a composite yarn, and heating said composite yarn to render said thermoplastic strand adhesive to bond said strands together.

20. A process of making a composite multiply yarn, the steps comprising drafting a strand non-thermoplastic strand and a thermoplastic strand, one of said strands forming a sheath about the other strand and united thereto as a result of the activation of said thermoplastic strand.

22. In a process of making a knitted fabric having a reduced tendency toward laddering, the steps comprising knitting into a fabric a composite multi-ply yarn comprising a potentially adhesive strand twisted with a non-adhesive strand, and treating said fabric to render the potentially adhesive strand adhesive to bond said potentially adhesive strand to said non-adhesive strand and to bond said multi-ply yarns to contiguous yarns in said fabric to retard laddering.

23. Aknitted fabric formed with a composite multi-ply yarn comprising a potentially adhesive strand twisted with a non-adhesive strand, the potentially adhesive strand being bonded to the non-adhesive strand and said multi-ply yarn being bonded to a contiguous yarn in said fabric is retarded.

CARLETON S. FRANCIS, Jn. 

